You'll probably find that msminsurance.co.uk are open-minded about insuring these.

It does feel safe, yes. Obviously, it's not as safe as a larger car, but certainly feels safer than I would on a motorcycle. On busy fast moving dual carriage ways, with other vehicles going 70mph, it feels slightly vulnerable, but not massively.

Yes, and no. Technically, it's an electric tricycle. People casually refer to it as an "electric car", but for classification, it's treated as a motorcycle. Have a read of the following if you're interested to know more: www.carverelectric.co.uk/faqs

Yes, I shot an earlier video there. See my other videos.

To transport it from A to B.

@@TechTravel-up2cx oh right, surely it would've been easier, faster and cheaper to throw it on a trailer.

@@musicman4164 I didn't have one available and that would be much less "Fun".😁

Thanks for the feedback. Really pleased it was of some help to you.

Were you in a non-Tesla? If so, what Mobile network were you on? Thanks for your comment.

Tesla Superchargers prior to V4 don't work with non-Tesla cars except via the Tesla App. The V3 and earlier Superchargers don't have any kind of user interface or card reader equipment. Literally, the only interaction with the physical charging stall is the plug / cable. Kia's charge card works with a variety of providers (but not all, and certainly not Tesla prior to V4).

I'm with Vodafone currently, I'd read on Zapmap that some people (unspecified networks) had also had trouble at this site. I did meet another Kia driver after filming who'd been successful with their charging, but they didn't say which network provider they were with.

The range and charge time isn't a problem for the journey profile they're designed for. This journey was an unusual one (outside it's design use-case) to move it from A to B.

@@TechTravel-up2cx So what you're saying is that this vehicle would be great if you had a fleet of other vehicles for you to use so you could select a vehicle specific for a specific journey. Unfortunately most people have one vehicle that does everything, my motorcycle could be my shopping trolly, my day out, my vehicle to pick up the other half, and a whole lot more, seems to me you are suggesting this vehicle is only good for one thing, to that would not be a good selling point, buy this vehicle to add to a fleet for a specific job only does not look inspiring. Oh but it's fun, OK but not practical. That's why it needs the changes to make it a practical vehicle that people can see would fit their life style. 4 hours waiting for charge is no fun, 1 hour would be hard 20 minutes for 80 percent may be a capable just about. 50 mile range sucks eggs big time.

@@flitsies I'm not saying what others should do or not do. I'm not trying to justify the existence of this or other small cars and commuter vehicles. People do what works for them - for whatever their reasons are.

@@TechTravel-up2cx I get that but the way this has been thought out with regards to the way invisible claimed this vehicle was made for in the UK just does not work, parking in the city with this may be a problem due to it having 3 wheels the range socks and the charge time is not good add all that up and a huge price tag and they have missed the mark big time. Change these few things and it would probably be a winner.

I didn't time each and every stop, but you might get a feel for it from reading the other comments.

No.

Maybe I should have summarised that in the video, but I've since answered it twice in the comments: Cost was £10.56 across all the public chargers I used. . Yes, I was very tired the once I got home.

Thanks for your comment. It's always interesting to know where people are watching from. My particular journey was just about moving the vehicle from London to Leeds cheaply and relatively quickly.

There is heating (windscreen heater and side window blowers with heat), but not being familiar with the vehicle, I wanted to mostly avoid using them too much, so as not to reduce range much until I got more familiar with the Carver. I did use them on and off, but minimally

Yep! Keep a close eye on the road signs, it can get bloody confusing sometimes (snorfiets & bromfiets have different rules in some places as well).

Agreed that small battery cars are not for people with long journey requirements. It's horses for courses. This long journey isn't what the vehicle was designed for - but I've proved it was possible, just not very practical. But some people are missing the point of why I did this... The journey was *one* way (not the most practical) of me transporting the vehicle cheaply, whilst also being something "fun" and different. I had some leave from work that I had to take, so decided I'd do this, rather than pay to have it transported. EVs with small batteries (just like small cars with small engines) are not aimed at Inter-city motorway or long distance travel. The Carver's whole design intent is to be an Inner-city commuter vehicle. It's just that *I* decided to take it outside its design use-case. If you watch all the way to the end of the video, I freely admit it was a nuts thing to do. 😀

Thanks for your comment. Cost was £10.56 across all the public chargers I used. In "normal" urban road traffic, I felt perfectly safe. On the much faster roads - primarily the A1 dual carriage way sections of 70 mph roads, it felt slightly less safe when large lorries overtook me, but not all that much. I was more concerned about being a hindrance to traffic flow, when the maximum speed I could do was lower than the surrounding traffic. Other drivers didn't seem particularly impatient with being behind the Carver, but I did occasionally pull over, or "hug the curb" on various 60mph roads when it was safe to do so, to allow faster vehicles to pass. The Carver S+ can do about 51mph, although less going up hill. Most often, I was keeping up with traffic (40 - 45 mph), except for on the faster roads. Remembering that I was doing a ridiculous journey for what this vehicle's designed for, I averaged about 10.5mph over the 24 hour period, but that's not a realistic picture, because I stopped longer than I needed to a couple of times, and took some wrong turns, as well as running out and the delay that caused me. For journeys within the use-case of this vehicle, average speeds won't really be any different to other vehicles on the road. Insurance is a bit more difficult, one company that used to insure more specialist vehicles exited the market since 2023, but there are a couple I found. If you're really interested in all this, maybe join the Facebook owners group and read past comments.

@TechTravel-up2cx many thanks for taking the time to provide such detailed information. Much appreciated. It is encouraging to see how microcars, light quadricycles and other alternatives to cars start to finally appear on the roads in certain countries. But as long as these minimalist products cost more than second hand cosy, safe and reliable small cars, they will struggle entering the market despite the great interest the public gives them. It would take a strong support from governments to produce them at an affordable price, and for insurance to be reasonable. I shall keep on dreaming 😌 looking at KZfaq videos such as yours.

@@nct948 Don't you think that too many of these on Britains Roads might just become a 'hindrance' almost the same as Caravanners at holiday time? We're in Australia, where distances can be large. I doubt that Carvers could happen here.

@@peterduxbury927 I think the video shows how unpractical it would be to use Carvers outside cities. They look the part but cost too much to purchase and insure, and the need for frequent and slow refilling takes the fun out of the experience. I hope that the latest types of batteries will bring much needed improvements to the microcars and similar concepts so that they can become the vehicles of the future but for now second hand economical and cheap petrol cars are still a better choice.

@@nct948 I agree with you 100%. I felt that it was an impractical vehicle, all high costs and questionable Range, because it cannot move a family around. Many EVs are practical, and do a great job. Back in 2019, I decided to convert my 1971 Beetle Super Bug tp 100% EV. At age of 76, I had almost 20 years of having to change oils, reset the Tappets, change -out Spark Plugs, and general engine maintenance. No dirt down my finger nails. The EV Beetle starts reliably, and full instant power. It has 125HP, a top speed and acceleration that outperforms most modern cars. Further to this, there is no depreciation. I get about 80 miles per charge, but the car has always been used locally. To me, a real thrill to drive my EV Beetle every day. Owning the EV Beetle when directly compared to The Carver, is like comparing chalk and cheese. Great to write to you. Greetings from Australia.

Yes but he would have objected to the charging plug.

Nice!

At least you gave it the correct name - and NOT a Robin Reliant!!

If there's enough demand, who knows...

@@TechTravel-up2cx Demand would be higher if the company fixed the simplest of problems with them which has been mentioned before.

Thanks for your comment. The body of the Carver is effectively a Roll-Cage. It's less exposed than a motorbike (e.g. don't need a motorcycle crash helmet), but obviously being classed as a motor(tri)cycle, it's not got the full safety stuff that's mandated for cars. It's mostly now going to be local(ish) journeys. 😎

Yes. The Carver S+ can do up to around 50mph.

@@TechTravel-up2cx can you tell us why you chose the carver? Was it imported?

@@georgeross9834 I chose it because it looked great fun, would get through some traffic easier than a larger car, and I intended to use it for what it was designed for - short commuting across the city and popping to the shops etc. As they're imported by a London based company (CarverElectric), I needed to transport it from London to home. I decided to drive it home rather than pay a transport company to collect / deliver it. I knew it would be somewhat of a challenge, and I did prepare for that journey as best as I could (charging adapter & extension leads, route planning for electric chargers etc). Driving it home was much cheaper, but also was an adventure.

😁

Service info is available on the CarverElectric.co.uk website FAQ. My nearest service centre is about 80 miles away, so I do have that challenge at some point.

Thanks. Yeah I'm sure you're right, although I'm really thankful for Tesco's "facilities" anyway. 😀

Not forgetting the change over to fresh horses would be a hell of a lot quicker than waiting to charge those batteries.

Agreed - if one was going to do this sort of journey all the time. However, that's not what the vehicle was designed for. Whilst the journey was clearly possible with a bit of planning, that *very* long journey I did was a almost certainly a one off for me. For journey's within any car's range, and the ability to charge at home overnight, or destination charge whilst doing other things, charging time is a non-issue. Obviously faster charging would be nice, but it won't generally cause me an issue for the mostly short journeys going forward.

Thanks for your comment. I could probably have done the journey more efficiently, if I'd not stopped quite as long at the charge stops and not made a few navigational mistakes. Yes, it's quite weird doing the corners on the roundabouts etc. See the other video: kzfaq.info/get/bejne/pL12Y9Ge17zDhKs.html

Accelerator and Brake pedals are on the cabin floor where you'd expect to find them in an electric car.

Postcode according to Zapmap is HG2 8QZ

Thanks for your comment. Yes, I couldn't choose the weather, I'd arranged to collect it on a particular day and just had to follow through with that. Distance is do-able with planning and care, but it really is designed as a city car.

If China made these they would be £3K

I had to travel light, because I got the train down from Leeds that morning. Otherwise I'd have had a portable power station with me, but that wasn't very practical to carry on the trains given its weight. It's an S+, slower one wouldn't have been sensible (or popular) on the A1 fast stretches.

Thanks for your valuable contribution.

Air Conditioning is an optional extra.